Five things you need to know from Saturday of Week 1 besides just Deion Sanders, Colorado result

Despite not being posted until around midnight Eastern Time, the most recent Colorado-TCU video from Deion Sanders Jr.’s Well Off Media YouTube account already had more than 450,000 views as of early Sunday afternoon.

The other post-game video from that account on Saturday was also already at nearly 400,000 views.

If you needed any additional proof of the level of national interest in Deion Sanders and the Buffaloes, there it is. But while Colorado’s win over TCU was far and away the biggest story in college football on Saturday, there were some other noteworthy developments around the country too.

Here are five additional things you need to know from Saturday of Week 1:

Tough day for Big 12 teams

Entering this weekend, there were three Big 12 teams ranked in either the AP or coaches poll outside of the two (Texas and Oklahoma) that are about to leave the conference. Two of the three lost Saturday.

No. 17 TCU was one. Texas Tech, which was No. 24 in the coaches poll entering its second season under Joey McGuire, lost too. The Red Raiders fell in double overtime in a road game at Wyoming, a Mountain West program that finished last year 7-6. 

They weren’t the only Big 12 program to lose to a Group of Five opponent, though.

Baylor did too, falling 42-31 to to Texas State and first-year head coach GJ Kinne.

Outside of Texas and Oklahoma, Big 12 teams were 1-4 in games against FBS opponents. The only win was a 17-14 victory from Houston over UTSA.

The silver lining for Brett Yormark and the Big 12? The performances in recent days from a couple of those teams set to join the conference in 2024, Colorado and Utah, which overcame injuries to star QB Cam Rising and other key players to beat Florida.

Pac-12 QBs

Where to start?

Caleb Williams added some new plays to his USC highlight reel Saturday, including this one and this one. Shedeur Sanders threw for a Colorado record 510 yards and four touchdowns in the Buffaloes’ win over TCU. Michael Penix had 450 yards and five touchdown passes in a 56-19 Washington win over Boise State. And, oh by the way, Saturday was further proof too that the Pac-12 is loaded with talented quarterbacks well outside of just that group and others like Oregon’s Bo Nix, Rising and Oregon State’s D.J Uiagalelei.

We told you a couple weeks ago that you’ll be hearing a lot more soon about Washington State’s Cam Ward. He showed why on Saturday. Ward, whom Washington State is expecting to have a huge year under new offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle, had 451 passing yards, 40 rushing yards and four total touchdowns in a 50-24 win over Colorado State.

We also got a glimpse Saturday at UCLA’s big-time freshman QB Dante Moore. Although Moore didn’t start the Bruins’ game against Coastal Carolina, he ended up throwing for 143 yards and two touchdowns in helping UCLA pull out a 27-13 win. His second touchdown pass was a beautiful 62-yard strike on the first play of an early fourth quarter drive that gave the Bruins a 21-13 lead.

Based on the way the game played out against Coastal Carolina, it’s tough to see Chip Kelly not starting Moore when UCLA faces San Diego State next week.

Alabama QB situation

For Alabama fans concerned about the state of the Crimson Tide quarterback position, Saturday should have been at least relatively encouraging in advance of next week’s game against No. 11 Texas.

During Alabama’s 56-7 win over Middle Tennessee, Jalen Milroe became the first QB in school history with three passing touchdowns and two rushing scores in the same game. In 35 minutes of action, Milroe led six Tide touchdown drives and finished 13 of 18 with 194 passing yards, 48 rushing yards, the five total touchdowns and no turnovers.

“I think Jalen did a good job,” Alabama head coach Nick Saban said. “I think he’s had a good fall camp. I thought he played well in both scrimmages. I think he’s more confident. He’s doing a good job in the passing game. His athleticism helps him. … And I thought he threw the ball effectively. I thought he played well.”

Next week will be much more telling with Milroe, though. Texas’ defense features several players on the radar for NFL scouts as prospects for the 2024 NFL draft, including potential early-round picks such as linebacker Jaylan Ford, defensive back Jahdae Barron and defensive linemen like T’Vondre Sweat.

Young head coach on the rise

After leading Incarnate Word to the semifinal round of the FCS playoffs and to the top scoring offense at the Division I level in his first year as a head coach, GJ Kinne has now started his second season as a head coach with another noteworthy result.

Kinne, who was hired as the new head coach at Texas State this offseason, led the Bobcats to a 42-31 win over Dave Aranda and Baylor in his first game as Texas State’s head coach. It was the Bobcats’ first-ever win over a Power Five opponent. It also came just one year after Texas State lost, 42-7, to Baylor under the previous Bobcats staff.

One of the stars for Kinne was former Auburn and LSU QB T.J. Finley, who threw for 298 yards with four total touchdowns.

The 34-year old Kinne, a former Tulsa and NFL QB, was the quarterbacks coach and co-offensive coordinator under Gus Malzahn at UCF in 2021 before getting that first head coaching opportunity at Incarnate Word.

Hot seat watch

Among head coaches on the hot seat entering the season, one with a particularly bad loss Saturday was Boston College’s Jeff Hafley.

The Eagles fell in overtime to a Group of Five opponent, Northern Illinois, that finished with 3-9 mark in 2022. 

Like Northern Illinois, Boston College was also coming off a 3-9 record last season, which was a step back after a 6-5 finish (including 5-5 in ACC play) under Hafley in 2020 and a 6-6 mark in 2021. Dating back to last season, the Eagles have now lost seven of their last eight games.

They face an FCS opponent, Holy Cross, next week before a matchup against No. 8 Florida State Sept. 16.